Lee's Home
by RayOut
Summary: Hazel and her friend, old man Lee, are on their way to a new settlement in South Dakota. It's said to be the safest communities in the zombie apocalypses and anyone and everyone in welcome. With only a thousand miles to go, they cross paths with remainder the Murphy escort group. (10K X CO) Z Nation.
1. Chapter 1

Note: I have rewritten the first three chapters. I didn't make any significant changes and there is no need to reread, unless you would like to. Also I would appreciate if you could give me any feedback, negative or positive, I am trying to improve my writing and it would mean a lot to me. Thank you!

Chapter 1

Before this apocalypse, hunger was a trick of the mind. If even the slightest murmur or growl, you would find yourself standing in front of the refrigerator, ready to chow down. Before the Z's Hazel, like many, could eat anything her heart desired. Pizza, hot dogs, Mac n' cheese, those chocolate things with peanut butter in the middle, and gooey butter cake.

"Oh, Gooey butter cake! I miss you soooo much!" Hazel cried and her fellow survivor, old man Lee, elbowed her in the ribs.

"You know the rules hazelnut! Don't speak of food, unless you have food"- The old man moseyed behind her .- "Do you have food?" He gave her a playful Look, his blue eyes sparkled in the sun and despite the hunger pains she let out a lighthearted laugh.

"Negative, sir." She threw her arms up.

"Well those buildings up ahead," -He pointed just down the road.- "Should be Steelville and if we are lucky we won't succumb to starvation before we get there." The old man gave a sly smile, "But, I don't think there will be cake."

"It's OK, I'll be delighted if there's any food." Hazel rolled her eyes and the odd pair continued their steady pace into the forgotten town. The main street was jam-packed with abandon cars and almost all of the window were broken on the shops.

"Lets start there" Lee pointed to the nearby drug store. The sign above the door reads 'Sam's Conner'. It was hand painted, in blue and yellow and most of the windows were still intact.

"It looks promising." She agreed and they approach the glass front store. The words 'family owned' was written on the door in navy blue. At one point in her life, breaking into a home or businesses rubbed Hazel the wrong way, but that was years ago. She no longer thought of the people who use to own this business, instead she worried about her next meal and safety.

With a tight grip on her ax, Hazel entered through the door first, followed by Lee. He tossed a kitchen timer, his gun ready at his side. The loud beeping echoed throughout the empty store, but nothing moved, moan or groan.

"What now?" She loosened her grip on the ax.

"The lack of Z's is suspicious, but I'm too hungry to care. So, guess we will run the risk." Lee stepped forward, his gun now in hand. - "You start with aisles. I'll check behind the corner and then we will check the back of the store together." Hazel nodded and began her search for food. The first aisle was a bust, only a box of tissues, some trash. She was at the end of the second aisle when Lee called her name.

"What is it?" She ran up to the cash register and throw down her backpack. He held up a can from behind the corner.

"Sardines!" He said with a huge smile. She took the can from his hand and returned the smile.- "That's not all. Two cans of sardines!" He haled the second can higher than the first.

"It's amazing..." Tears began to well up in her eyes and she used the edge of her sleeve to wipe them away.

"Don't be such a nut, Hazel!" He pulled out the can opener. "I told you everything would work out. We just need to get where we are going." He handed her the open can of sardines. She accepted it with both hands.

"And where is that again?" She jumped up and sat on the edge of the corner.

"You know where. I've told you a million times." The man opened the second can of sardines and pop the first one into his mouth.

"Tell me Again!" She urged him. "One more time. Please?"

"Alright! It located near the border of South Dakota and Wyoming. Not too far from the town of Deadwood."- He popped another sardine into his mouth.- "They call it The Last Sanctuary and Rumor is, they have food all year round, ruining water, and bingo on Friday nights. Just to be clear, Friday night will be date night, so don't wait up!" He gave a cheesy grin - "and last, but not least, we are only about a thousand miles from it. " He ate another sardines.

"Hmm... ruining water... I can shower."- She put another tiny fish in her mouth.

The idea of The Last Sanctuary, gave her chills. It was like a light at the end of the tunnel and it had been a long time since she could see the light in anything, yet here she was.-"A thousand miles..." She whispered.

"Yep, in a thousand miles you will be able to take your first real showers in years... Kid, you will shine so bight the boys won't be able to take their eyes off you!" Lee gave her a nudge and a wink.

"No way!" She put the last one in her mouth and licked all ten fingers.

"Oh come on! Are you tell'n me you don't think about boys? Every eighteen year old is interested in that sort of thing."- He then emptied the remaining liquid from the can into his mouth. She shrugged and Lee shook his head.- "I'm going to have a look at the back room, you should finish checking the aisle." He took a step back.

"Ok" She set the empty can down and began to check the aisle, as Lee disappeared through the back. The last four aisles were just as bare as the first. There was nothing but empty boxes and left over candy wrappers. After she was done, she returned to the front.

"Hey, Lee?" She shouted into the dark back room, there was no answer.-"How's it going back there?" She tried again but, their was no answers. She began to fear the worst when the back door slowly open. She let out a sight of relief as Lee appeared in the doorway.

"Didn't you hear me call you. Rule two, answered when called." She crosses her arm's in disapproval, but as he entered the room it became clear he was not alone. An older man with a long gray beard, dressed in all black, followed closely behind him.

"There's your friend." The bearded man lifted his gun so Hazel could see it and he smiled.- "Put your hands up." He said in a low tone and She did what she was told. The man with the gun, ran his free hand across his beard. Lee watched his every move from the corner of his eye.- "Stand by the freezers, hands up" He pushed Lee away and he stumbled a bit, but recovered quickly.

"It's safe!" The men Shouted.

A younger man emerged from the back door. He was also dressed in all black, had dirty blond hair and dark brown eyes.

"So what do you think? is the girl worth anything?" The old man looked towards his accomplice.

The next moment was a blur. In a smooth motion, Lee took the gun he had hiding in his waistband and aimed at the two men. He pulled the trigger and the sound of the gun causes Hazel's heart to stop. The bullet ripped through the bearded mans shoulder and the young men, with his own smooth motion took the gun from his side and he pulled the trigger. She hared the bullet whiz past her face. An awful sound escaped Lee's lips and in slow motion she watched him collapsed beside her.

"LEE!" Hazel's legs gave way and she dropped next to him. He held both of his hands over his stomach, crimson blood began to flow passed his fingers and down to the floor. "This can't happen!" She placed her hands over his, attempting to stop the blood.

"They can't..."- He struggle to lift his head. A distant look in his eyes- " They can't touch you..." His head dropped to the floor and he let out a gasp.

"There's no time for this!" A deep voice came from behind and a shadow drifted across her. When she turned to confront them, she was greeted by the back of a pistol and then darkness.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Mercy

It was a sudden drop to the ground that woke Hazel from her restless sleep. Her head collides with the cold concrete and her eyes shot open. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust and while In her groggy state, her mind began to wonder 'where am I?'

When her vision became clear, She could see most of the room. It was a small, possibly a basement. In addition, there were two small windows on the farthest wall, both were boarded up. The only light in the room was from the many candles placed throughout it.

She could make out the image of two men. One lying on a nearby table, the other hovering over him. The man on the table groan and moan and she recognized him as the man Lee shot.

'Lee is gone.' Under normal circumstances, This thought would be devastating, but she knew there wasn't anytime to mourn. It's true, many good people have left her life in the past three years. Most were never mourned and in this case, she would have to finish the journey on her own. When she did arrived in South Dakota, she would mourn all the losses and celebrate life.

"Another girl?" - For the first time she became aware of the man sitting next to her.-"I go days without seeing anyone and you find 3 girls in a week. You have a talent, sir." He sat cross legged, with his back against the wall and his arms tied behind his back, same as her.

"Shut up"-The young man, roared over his shoulder. He then firmly gripped the arm of the man on the table.- "Johnny, you need to stop moving so I can fix you up." He said with uncertainty.

Hazel struggled to sit in an upright position, so that she could get a better look. A sharp pain shot through her head and down to her lower back and she took in a deep breath, in an attempting to keep silence.

"The new's girls is waking!"- The man next to her said in a dull voice. She glared up at him and he smiled back, he directed his attention to her.-"Don't worry, unlike me, you won't be here long."

"Murphy, I told you to SHUT-UP!" The young man rubbed his forehead, in frustration.

Johnny, the man on the table, rolled in pain. Followed by several mumbled curse words. She watched as the man attempted to console his friend, but the injurer man punched and twisted in defense. Hazel knew what she had to do.

"I-" As she began to speak, the man next to her looked her over. "I can help, I can take the bullet out. I've done it before."

"Why?" Murphy asked in disbelief, but Hazel leaned closer to her captors, ignoring the sickly man next to her.

"I'll help, if you promise me you'll let me stay here, Instead of selling me off."- The man shook his head.

"Stupid girl...They're not going to let you stay. The moment he's better, they -" The young man rushed over and landed a solid kick to Murphy's stomach. He lurches forward and began to cough.

"If you don't shut up I'll cut out your damn tongue!" He whispers into the sickly man's ear. Murphy took in a deep breath and swallowed his rest of his words.

"Alright, you have a deal, but if you run." He patted the gun at his side.- "I shoot." She nodded her head just once and walked over to the injurer man, with the young man following closely behind. When she reached the table, the first thing to catch her eye, was the dry, dark red blood on the table. It was obvious this was not the first injured person to be here.

"It doesn't look too deep, do you have any tweezers?" He walked over to a separate table and pulled out a first aid box.

"Here." He muttered as he handed it to her. The man settled behind her again, watching every movement. She opened the box slowly and began to go through it. Gaza, bandages, an empty bottle of disinfectant and a syringe. She placed them out onto the table. Upon seeing the syringe, a plan began to form. She took the tweezers out of the box.

"You need to hold him down." She said to the blonde. Her captor moved to the other side and gripped both of the man's arm's. She took a deep breath, It was true, she had done this once before, but this time was different. The first time it was a young boy's mother and she was only person he had left in the world. At that time she needed to save her. This time she was only trying to stay one step ahead of her captors and this was the only way.

She dug the tiny, sliver tweezers into the man's open wound, he thrashed and yelled out in pain, as Blood began to gush out more intensely. She placed her other hand on his good shoulder to steady herself.

"I almost have it." She pulled the bullet out and let it drop to the table. By now, the man stopped moving, His eye's closed. His chest still continued its steady up and down pace.

"What's wrong with him?" The young man placed his hand on his gun.

"He's fine, he just passed out from the pain." She placed her hands over his open wound to slow the bleeding.- " I need a disinfectant, do you have and alcohol?"

He nodded. "It's upstairs." To her surprises, without hesitation, the man entered a nearby door and proceeded up the steps. She turned to the man behind her, he sat with his back against the wall, his eye's closed. He paid no attention to the world around him.

She seized the moment, taking the syringe from the first aid box. She placed it just in the crook of his arm and slipped the needle into under his skin. She injected the air from the syringe into the his vein and stepped back.

The man's eye's opened wide, his hands abruptly went to his chest. His entire body jolted and he gasped for air and then he became motionless.

"What did you do." The man Murphy urged. He was now fully conscious of his surroundings. She didn't acknowledge him, she was too aware of what she had done.

It didn't take long for the man, the one that was once Johnny, to sit up. His body was tense as he slowly turned to Hazel. He jumped off the table and dashed towards her, she froze. Murphy sat back and watch it play out, but instead of the normal rip and tear, zombie Johnny stopped only a inches from her. He didn't reach for her, only watched her with curiosity.

Murphy looked on in disbelief. It was something about this moment he could relate to completely. The fear in the girl's eye's, as she with for her own death, but it never comes.

It was the creaking of the steps, that caught Johnny's attention, It was the young man.

"Johnny." He called, his lips curled up into a smile. The man was blind, he was so happy to see his friend in 'good health', that he didn't realize his friend was already dead. By the time Johnny had begun to sprint in the young man direction, it was to late.

He wrapped his finger around his gun and freed it from it's holster, but once the gun was out in front of him, Johnny had already sunk his teeth into the young man's neck.

Hazel acted fast, it was almost as if she had done it all before. She took a chair from the table and brought it down repetitively over Z's head, until he no longer moved. She doped the chair next to her, breathing heavily

"Wow." She had forgotten all about the sickly man Murphy. He now stood against the wall, a skeptical look on his face. She wiped the remainder blood on her hands, onto her pant.

"You..." A garbled voice came from under the Z's body. She grabbed a hand full of Johnny's shirt and flipped him. The Young man was still clinging to life. His neck and shoulder were thoroughly chewed, almost unrecognizable. Blood spilled from his mouth.- " You..." He said again.

She reached for the gun he had dropped. The only thing on her mind was Lee. The last good man on earth, a father to her. She placed it to his head.

"Did you give him mercy?" She said it so calmly, it was frighting even to her. She placed her finger lightly over the trigger, tears in their eyes.

"Yes-" The words fumbled out of his mouth as he looked at her intently.

"I hope you're telling me the truth." She whispers and then she pulled the trigger. After the loud bang there was a long moment of stillness and no one moved.

"Whoa." Murphy said, breaking the silence. He moved a little closer and Hazel then pointed the gun at him, he put his hand up imminently.

"Where did they put my bag?" she said just above a whispered.

"The cabinet." He pointed to the corner. She collected her bag and Lee's. Then she steps over the bodies and dashed up the steps, not once looking back.

"Wait!"- Murphy stumbled forward.-"Untie me."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Chapter 3

House on route eight

The key to surviving during the apocalypse, is to stay off main roads and take the road less traveled. In this case, for Hazel, it was route eight. Surrounded by mostly woods, it was never busy, not even before the Z's. The original plan was to take the road as close to St. Louis as possible, but unfortunately, she had picked up an unwanted companion.

The man Murphy, had been casually walking behind her, since the night before. Anytime she would steal a glance of him, he would turn away. Nothing about him seemed threatening, his pale skin, thin arms, awkward demeanor. She predicted he would run at the first sign of trouble. Finally, after hours of silently walking, she twisted around to face him.

"Stop following me!" She placed one hand on each hip and stuck out her chests.

"Don't flatter yourself. I'm not following you." He put his Hands up in deference.- "We're just headed in the same direction." He stepped passed her and continued forward.

"Alright I'll play your game. Where are you going?" She matched his pace, as he hesitated to answer.

"North." He pointed ahead, careful not to make eye contacted.

"Why?" She stepped in front of him and he drew in a deep breath.

"Just north, why do you want to know? Where are you going, huh?" He puffed out his chest and crossed his arms. He was doing his best to turn the conversation around and it was clear to her that, she was only wasting her energy. Eventually the man would wander off.

She rolled her eyes,- "Stop fallowing me"- With that, she turned on her heels and continue forward, with the man behind. There was another hour of walking in silence. She could hear his occasional muttering, followed by a short sigh. It wasn't till she came to a little house that she found his peasants to be a problem.

It sat just at the top of the hill, barely visible from the road. a small two story Victorian home, with a large porch. It was the perfect place to camp out for the night, but what to do about her stalker? She stopped just in front of the gravel path, it leaded up the hill, the man stopped just behind her.

"Look" -She didn't bother to glance back at him.- "I guess, If we are sticking together, we need to work together. So, let's clear this house." She began to walk up the path, Murphy pursued her.

"Clear? You mean kill the people- I mean Z's inside." He stated. She stopped just in front of the porch.

"No, I mean give them mercy." She took the ax off the side of her backpack and began to climb the steps.

"Is that necessary." - He stood at a distance, his hands in his pockets.- "They're people too, right?"

Baffled by his response, she turned to face him. 'Is this man insane' she thought. It had been years since she had heard someone refer to the zombies as people.

"Who are you... and how did you get this far?" She mindlessly, blurted out. The two, exchanges looks. He seemed annoyed by her response, but chose to not to express it.

"Your right, I'll do it. I'll give them mercy." He said flatly. He jogged up to the front door, his arm extended out, ready to open the front door.

"Wait, what are you going to use as a weapon? " He seemed a bit taken back by the question,as though it was the first time he was required to have a weapon.

"Here, take this."- She reluctantly gave him the ax. - "I want it back when you're done." He took the ax in, then pushed open the door.

Murphy never intended to use the ax, but he knew it would be strange if he entered empty handed. He leaned the ax by the front door and started to search the bottom floor.

The house was generally untouched. It was a small two story, with only three rooms on the bottom floor. First the living room, it had a small couch, a fireplace and it was decked out in a blue floral deigns (Just like grandma's house). Second, the kitchen, it had all of the usual items in it, including a small four person table, already set for a meal. Finley the, enclosed back porch. It was a bit dirty, but still in good condition. This house was a lost treasure, and a glimpse of what the world use to be.

Murphy entered the kitchen, he was not concerned about the Z's lingering nearby, but instead he wondered if the former owner had left anything edible. The untouched house was promising. He opened up a cabinet and Immediately, he was blown away. It was lined from top to bottom with caned food and bags of rice. He opened the next cabinet, it to was filled. He picked up one of the cans. "Cream of broccoli" he read.

"My new favorite soup!" He muttered, setting it down on the nearby table.

He then headed to the second floor. There was only four doors at the top of the stairs. The first door reveled a pale blue room, it was small, a queen sized bed took up most of the room, but no Z's. The second door was slimier to the first, also empty. The third room was just a bathroom and the fourth was the master bedroom.

He could hear grunts from the hallway. In the final room was the owner of the home. His skin gray, his clothing ripped, and he stood hunched over in front of the window. He turned to Murphy with ease.

"Sorry old friend, but you have to go." -He turned away.- "Follow me." He motioned to the Z.

Meanwhile, Hazel sat cross legged on the front porch. She took in the gentle breeze and leaned back against the house. He had ten more minutes and if he hadn't returned by then, she would amuse he was dead. It was just about that time she heard the door creak open, she looked up.

"Here." Murphy tossed her a can of chicken soup. -"It's all clear." He turned, and reentered the house. He headed straight into the kitchen, She muttered a thank you and followed him.

"How many were there?"- She asked. Murphy took one of the cans from the cabinet and she was able to see the stock of food -"Damn, that's a lost of food!"

"Yeah, there were none." He said plainly, pulling out a fork from a drawer.

"None?" She took one of the forks too.

"None." He sat down at the kitchen table and tugged the tab off the can and began to eat. It was odd, a house stocked up with this much food, but no one here to use it?

As she tried to think of a reason why someone would leave a stocked house, she ate two cans fulls of chicken soup. When she was done, she headed up the steps, ax in hand and like a good survivor, she checked each room thoroughly, before settling down in one.

The room she chose was a pale blue and it had a decent view of the gravel path that lead to the main road. She locked the door behind her and even with an hour or more of sunlight, she threw herself on the bed. You would think sleep would come easy, especially if this was the first time you were able to sleep in a bed in years, but the soft comfortable bed was foreign to her. All she did was tossed and turned.

She was finely on the edge of sleep when the sound of an engine startled her. She could hear tires over the rocky path in front of the house. She sat up, a chill traveled up back. Outside a red pickup truck pulled up and two men exit. There was an older man with a full white beard and a clean cut younger boy. She watched as they disappeared under the roof and onto the front porch.

In the past, she found meeting people on the road, to be more bad then good. So with caution, she softly reproached the door of her room. Careful not to make a sound, she opened the door just a crack.

"I'm not going with you." a voice came from the living room, She recognized the voice as Murphy's.

"I didn't ask. That all in the past now..."- This voice she didn't recognized.- " 10K said he saw a girl with you-" That was it. She didn't want to hear any more. What reason did they have to wonder about her? Were they friends of the men who shot Lee? They did know Murphy's name and like that, any thought she had of helping Murphy disappeared.

She snatched her bag off the end of her bed and open the window. She stepped onto the roof that expanded over the porch and used the window to keep balance. There was a large oak tree off to her right. If she able to use the tree to get off the roof, she would go to the nears house and camp out till morning. She reached out for a tree branch, her fingers just grazed it.

"I'll move the truck, around back." She froze, the boy was outside. His back was turned to her, as he strolled over to the pickup.

"You can't stay here" Murphy shouted. She attempted to step back into the window, but Her foot slipped just a bit, as a shingle came loose and tumble to the ground.

"Clam down Murphy, it only one night." She could hear the old man, but was unable to see him. She stepped back again, and another shingle detached from the roof. Than, there was a domino efface. One after another the shingles became undone. Her grip looseness and she slid all the way down, off the roof and onto the grass beneath. She landed feet first onto the grass and pain shot up her legs.

"Are you OK?" The boy jogged up to her. He appeared to have a sincere look of concern and she relaxed a little.

"I'm fine." She sat up and brushed a few pieces of grass off her hand.

"That was entertaining," - Murphy stood on the steps, the grayed hired man behind him.- " but you are no Macgyver."

"I sure missed your sense of humor, Murphy." The old man said. She attempted to stand, but pain shot through her ankle and she fell back.

"Here" The boy looped his arm under hers and lifted her off the ground without a thought.

"Thanks."- She kept her head down.- "By the way, who are you?"

"Oh, I'm 10k." He took a step forward, leading her to the house.

"and I'm doc"- The old man called- " I got some Oxycontin for that ankle if you need it."

"Are you a real doctor?" She questioned.

"By today's standers I am."-Doc shrugged- " You don't mind if we stay here, do you? It's getting late, and we have some catching up to do with Murphy." He laid a hand on Murphy shoulder, and Murphy pushed it away.

"You know each other?" She was prying for info. She wanted to know what type of people they were.

"Yeah, you could say we're good friends. Use to Play cards together." Doc said.

"Yeah, I wouldn't say that." Murphy.

"Why not? You've left us for dead many times, but we always forgive you..." 10k chimed in, with a smirk. She didn't feel 10k was attacking Murphy, but she did find the statement interesting.

At that comment Murphy, turned and walked into the house. 10k helped her as far as the kitchen and he pulled out one of the chairs for her to sit. Doc shuffled in behind them.

"If you guys are hungry, there's plenty of food in the cabinet. Help yourself and you are welcome to stay as long as you like. I'm leaving tomorrow morning." Hazel said.

"Tomorrow? What about your leg?" The dark haired boy leaned back against the kitchen cabinet, his arms crossed over his chest.

"He's right? It would be best to let yourself heal. You never know what you will run into or what you would need to run from." Doc added.

"Good point."-She nodded.- "Well, I'm going to head off to bed."

"Off to bed or off the roof " Murphy, shouted from the living room.

Her face lit up a bright red and to avoid her embarrassment she stood up, turned to the stairs and limped out of the kitchen. Unexpectedly 10k reach for her arm.

"I'll help." There was a long, unnatural pause - "It's the least I could do. You know, for letting us stay." He said, in an attempted to sound casual. She let out a nervous laugh.

"That's Ok, I can make it." She smiled and he loosened his grip on her arm.

"Nonsense,"- Doc watched them with a smile of his own.- " It's the least he could do." He leaned back in his chair.

There was nothing she could do but let it happen, so she did. He gently escorted her to the room she was in before. They exchanged smiles when she got to the door and without a word she began to shut the door.

"Wait!"- 10k stood a just in front of her door. "When you leave in the morning, could you use the front door. I would like to see you before you leave."

"Ok" She whisper, lightly closing the door. She could hear his soft laugh as he walked away.


	4. Chapter 4

Note: (Same note from chapter one.) I have rewritten the first three chapters. I didn't make any significant changes and there is no need to reread, unless you would like to. Also I would appreciate if you could give me any feedback, negative or positive, I am trying to improve my writing and it would mean a lot to me. Thank you!

Go fish

"Go fish" Murphy said.

Doc reached into the center of the table and picked up a card, but he had no luck. "Your turn." He looked across the table, to Murphy.

"Do you have any sixes?" He asked.

Doc shook his head "Go, fish."-He watched as Murphy collected his card and rearranged his hand. "Can I ask you a question?" He set his cards face down on the table.

"Only if you're asking about my cards." Murphy said without looking up.

"Do you think we could be friends? I mean me and 10k have no interest in taking you to California." Doc continued.

Murphy let out a sigh and dropped his cards onto the table "Is this necessary?"

"Come on Murphy, we could all start over." Doc urged him but, it did nothing. Murphy stood up, dropped his cards on the table and made his way up the steps.

10K watch from his place on the couch and waited till he heard the door up stairs shut, before heading in the kitchen.

"He's pretty mad." Doc collected the cards on the table into one pile.

"Yeah..." 10k sat down across from the old men and leaned back in his chair. "I hope he changes his mind." He said sincerely.

"Me too." Doc shuffled the card in his hands, and stared off into the Conner. Than a smile graced his face. "What do you think about his new friend?"

"What about it?" 10k turned his attention to a nearby window, avoiding all eye contact.

"Maybe she would like to join us." Doc taped his cards on the tables hoping to catch the young mans eyes, but 10k was stubborn. "Fine, do you want to play a game of cards?" The man shrugged in defeat.

"One game ." 10k moved his chair a little closer and Doc dealt out the cards.

It had to be at least 7 a.m and clouds had rolled in over the valley. Rain began to fall onto the old farm house and Hazel laid in bed, wrapped an old blue and pink quilt, listening to the coming storm.

"Shhhhh..." She hushed, as thunder roared in the distance. "Some of us are trying to sleep away a bad day." Her words were followed by silents, then by a loud boom.

She let out a sigh, rolled out of bed, and slowly made her way down the hall. Upon reached the bottom of the steps, she could she the kitchen was lit by candle. The old man sat at the table, his eyes shut, and head laid to one side. She tiptoed into the kitchen, being careful not to wake him. She took a glass from the cupboard and moved over to the sink.

"Oh look! It's the falling angle." -Murphy stood in the kitchen door way.- "Did you use the stairs this time?" He wandered in and dropped down onto one of the chairs. The old man stirred in his sleep, but didn't wake. 

"Yeah...sure." She said, as she filled up her glass. A moment of silence past between them, and she was perfectly ok with that.

Hazel didn't find him threatening anymore, but he did annoy her.

"So... where to next?" He broke the silence.

"What?" Hazel asked.

"You said you were leaving, where you off too?" His demeanor had changed. Normally he said everything with a confident, cocky attitude, but at the moment he was tapped his foot, and studying the floor.

"You're not following me." She spoke a little louder than she meant to and Doc sat up in his chair wiping sleep from his eyes.

"What?" Doc muttered, but no one acknowledged him.

"I didn't plan on it!" Murphy shouted, he sounded like a child being disciplined.

"Good!" She shouted, then turned back to the sink and filled up her cup again.

"What did I miss?" Doc asked, but instead of answering Hazel took a drink, and watched the rain outside the window. Murphy on the over hand, stood up abruptly and went out the back door, into the rain.

"Ok." Doc was clearly uncomfortable, he took in a deep breath. "I think I'm go'n fix some food, do you want anything?" He attempted to break the tension.

"Yeah..." She was still watching the rain from the kitchen window, when Murphy appeared in the field behind the house. Slowly he made his way to the barn out back, disappearing through the door. 'Why would he go there?' she wondered.

Doc stood next to her, and began to dig into the cupboard. "Do you want name brand chicken noodle soup or off brand?" He set both cans onto the counter and then reached back into the cupboard. He pulled out a box crackers. " I wander if these are stale?" He examined the box.

"On second though, I might eat later." She sat her cup in the sink and headed to the front room.

"Ok..." The old man watch, as she head out of the kitchen, through the front room and out the door. "I guess I'll make extra and when everyone stops acting so weird, they can come eat." He whispered to himself.

Outside the rain had lighted up and at the moment, it was only misting. She reached out to catch a few rain drops in her hand, she could heard the creak of the screen door as it open and she turned to see 10k on his way out, gun on his back.

"Hey." He laid back against the porch railing. "Hows your leg?" He asked smoothly.

"Oh, it's good." The truth was that, she had forgotten all about it. It was a little sore, but nothing like yesterday. She stepped down onto the gravel path. "How did you sleep?" She asked, in an attempt to make small talk.

"Good."- They locked eyes, just long enough to became uncomfortable and both looked away. "Are you leaving?" He questioned, it was his turn to make small talk.

"No, not today. I think I'll leave tomorrow." She looked in his direction, but was careful not to lock eyes again.

A smile crossed his face. "Good to hear. So what are you up to, today?" He joined her on the gravel path, in the light rain.

"I thought I would go for a walk." She said, taking a step towards the woods.

"Can I tag along? I need something to do." He was only a few steps behind her.

"Sure." She said, and they made their way in the woods, walking together in silence. She wanted to continue the conversation, but just didn't know how. What do you talk about now days? When she was with lee, they would talk about where they were going, where they would stop for the night, and when their next meal would be but, she couldn't talk about that with 10k.

"So where are you from?" 10k broke the silence, but he wasn't confidence, and it was clear he had spent the last few minutes choosing his words.

"Actually, I grew up not too far from here, just outside of St Louis." She said.

"Are you going home?" 10k pushed a branch out of her way and let her move past him.

The true was, she hadn't been home since the evacuated of all major city's, three years ago. She had no interest in going back, because she knew seeing all those empty houses, walking down sidewalks that she play on as a child and maybe even sit on her own bed, would be to sad. She had no interest in reliving the past, she only wanted to move forward and preserve her memory of home.

"No just passing through. Where are you from?" She asked, turning the focus to him.

"I'm from Tennessee." 10z said, and than it became quit again. This time it wasn't an awkward silence, it was welcomed. They listen to the birds, and the rain drops rolling off the tree leaves, onto the brush beneath.

It was a rare peaceful moment, in a chaotic world and it came to an end when 10k stopped in his tracks."I hear water." He begin to walk at a faster pace and Hazel jogged to catch up. they pushed through the heavy shrubs, till finally they emerged in a clearing.

It was a river, with crystal clear water and a small waterfall. Her mind instantly went to jumping in. It had been a long time since she had been near a large body of water this clean and full.

"Want to go for a swim?" 10k asked, he had already seat his gun down and began removing his shirt. He was just as existed as she was, never taking his eyes off the water.

"Yes." She said without hesitation, she dropped down and again to take her shoes off. 10K wasn't too far behind, kicking off his boots.

She walked up just to the water's edge and stuck one foot in, letting cool water flow over.

"Is it cold?"10k asked as he climbed a near by rock.

"Yes, but I don't mind." She let out a nervous laugh.

"Me either." He looked over the edge, assessing the depth the river. "You think its deep enough for me to jump."

She moved further into the water, till it came up to her waist. This must have been enough to reassure him, because he leaped from the rock. A wave washed over her, as he hit the water and a moment later he re-emerged, safe and sound.

"It's only a little cold." 10k ran his hand over his hair, to push it back.

Once again they fell into a comfortable silence. She laid back and watched the storm clouds take over the sky and enjoyed the feeling of being weightless.

"Maybe it'll be sunny tomorrow, I think I'll come back." 10k swam past her.

"We should definitely come back tomorrow. I think I'll stay another day."She spoke without thinking but, she meant it and if she would have been watching 10k, she would have seen the huge smile he wore.

"Good, maybe we could catch some fish here." 10k had swam the short stretch to the other side and then began to swim back.

"You know how to fish?" Hazel sat up, the water was now to her neck and she met him halfway.

"Yeah, do you like the fish?"10k stopped just a few feet in front of her.

"I've only been fishing once or twice, when I was younger. Do you think you could teach me?" Hazel asked.

He ran his hand over his hair again. "Sure, I don't know how good of a teacher I am, but I can definitely try." He smiled.

"Thanks" She smiled back and for a moment they were comfortable but, of course it didn't last. The Thunder boomed in the distance, officially ending their adventurer.

10k looked up and examined the storm clouds. "We should probably head back soon," He moved to his shoes. " That looks like a bad storm."

Hazel followed behind him and together the made their way back to the house.


End file.
